In my prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,826,222 there is disclosed a system for handling and dispensing prepackaged unit doses of medicine for a large number of patients, typically long-term nursing home patients. The system, successfully commercialized under the trademark ArtroPak, includes a dispensing box or container that is packed with unit dose medication. The box has printed on its exterior color coded sections to indicate various times and other conditions of administering the unit doses. A label, usually multi-part, printed with indicia relative to the patent is provided for superimposing on the color coded area of the container. By selectively punching the label before it is affixed to the container the color coded sections on the container are exposed when the label is affixed to the container. The exposed coded sections are readily visible to the person dispensing the medication and these color coded indicia signal to the person the time or conditions of administering the medication. Charting records are also provided to indicate the time and conditions of dispensing.
While the medication dispensing system disclosed in my '222 patent has been the standard for the industry for the past 15 years there has developed over that time period a need for an improved system. More particularly, through the years the evolution of computer applications for dispensing medication has resulted in a need for more flexibility in the label format. For example, it is now desirable for the label to accept bar coding and to also accept other information. The label design disclosed in my '222 patent is somewhat restrictive in its configuration for some of these newer applications. Horizontally and vertically disposed labels are now desirable. Also, in many instances, very large, high volume pharmacies have found the selective punching of the label to expose a color coding on the box to be time consuming. In addition, some nursing home facilities require special punching formats that may be difficult to remember. Also, a system is needed where if a mistake is made in setting the dosage administration time it can be easily corrected.
Based upon these and other considerations it has been the principal objectives of this invention:
1. to provide a color-coded system for use in dispensing unit dose medication which does not require a specific cooperating label; PA1 2. to provide such a system which does not require the punching of any label to expose color coding; PA1 3. to provide such a system where the color coding can be easily corrected or changed; PA1 4. to provide such a system which includes a label which can be easily formatted and printed in various ways; PA1 5. to provide such a system which insures that mistakes in dispensing the medication will be minimized.
These and other objectives will be obvious from the following drawings and description.